Why the Mickey Kasparian case is a difficult lesson for Democrats

Two years ago, Mickey Kasparian, longtime president of the United Food and Commercial Workers 135, was sued by a former employee for allegedly pressuring her into a lengthy, unwanted sexual relationship and by another woman who alleged he attempted to sexually assault her — claims Kasparian rejected. A year ago, he resigned from the county Democratic Party Central Committee in a bid to keep his high-profile union job as the #MeToo movement exploded around him and around the nation.

On Friday, Kasparian became a footnote in that national movement after his resounding defeat by Todd Walters, the former vice president of Local 135.

Kasparian had settled both lawsuits on unannounced terms while denying the allegations. But the accusers’ stories seemed credible, given their specificity and other accounts of his behavior. And the union spent nearly $830,000 on legal services last year, well above previous recent years. Now UFCW members have settled his fate, showing a better sense of what’s right and wrong than some Democrats who were slow to speak out against him.

Last December, several prominent local Democrats surveyed by a reporter for The San Diego Union-Tribune resisted calling for Kasparian to resign from his Local 135 post. Due process is vital, but Kasparian’s defenders should be more vocal if another case emerges on their side of the spectrum.